Artsy Fartsy...But Cool

Saturday afternoon we spent in Baltimore City at the American Visionary Art Museum. It was a wonderful experience for the whole family. All around the outside of the museum, there are beautiful mosaic tiles. Like this:

And the shimmery sparkly tree in front of the museum. What a beautiful sparkly creation!

The museum has tree buildings. There is the main exhibition building that has amazing artwork and sculptures by tremendously talented and creative people. Some of them almost moved me to tears. And some of them were so cute and clever, that we all were in awe. The amazing thing is that many of the artists started creating their artwork in elementary school. Like Dalton Ghetti, who started carving tiny sculptures out of his pencil lead when he was in third grade.

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The egg that fell out of that big nest This is a great place to take the whole family. There really is something here for everyone to enjoy

The Great Brazilian Self-Waxing Adventure

Ended today.

What I learned:

1. You can't be afraid of pain. Waxing in general is painful. If you can't wax your own mustache, don't. even. try. it!

2. Even if you are tough like me, you'll want to stop after a couple of rips.

3. Don't attempt to do this all on one day. I did it in phases. First phase was just the bikini line. Second was the top of the pubic bone and the perenieal area. Third was the rest.

4. You need at least three hands to do phase three. That's why I'm not completely clean. I couldn't hold the skin tight enough. (maybe having four vagi-births has something to do with this). Did I just share that?

5. It's very messy. The wax is sticky and you can't wash it off with water. You must use oil to dissolve it. At least the oil moisturizes your skin.

6. I won't do it myself again because it took a lot of time, was messy, and unfinished.

7. I will, however, go to a professional to get it done. If I can do 85% of it on myself, I could certainly have a professional (compete stranger) do the whole job.

Who's next?

testing, testing...1... 2...RIIIIIP!!!

So, I did a test area this morning on one side, just the 'bikini' line. The verdict - Not too bad. It burned right afterward, but it stopped hurting almost immediately. Honestly, when I get my eyebrows waxed, it hurts more. Also, when I cleaned up with the tweezers, it felt like nothing. Maybe because I was numb, maybe because the hairs were already 'loosened'.

I am fighting the urge to go back into the bathroom and finish. I can't do it now. I don't have the time, and Vivian is getting restless. (No, she wasn't in the bathroom with me)

I'll post pictures of the finished product tomorrow morning.


Ha Ha Ha, just checking to see if you were paying attention!

three words

SELF BRAZILIAN WAX

Brave or stupid? Discuss.

TMI? Maybe

Fly Like an Eagle - or - How Trystan Spent His 11th Birthday

At the jobsite with the Future Eagle Scout. We are constructing a paved walkway at his old middle school.Leveling the ground, in the drizzly rain and mud. We all worked so hard and got so dirty. I was so proud of Marshall for organizing and executing this huge project. Four hours later, it's finished. This was the short path. It was only about 60 feet long. Two days later, we completed another path that was 90 feet long. We used over 200 paving stones.Surprisingly enough, we didn't cuss each other out during the whole project. It might have been due to the fact that there were children and missionaries all around us, but I'd like to believe it was because of our love and devotion for each other. (Ha Ha Ha)

I guess I lied

It all started with the cinnamon rolls. Ariella knows about them. They were so fantastic and gooey and bready and sweet. Those used to be my three favorite food groups, you know? I pretty much didn't eat anything unless it fit into one of those categories. I'm sorry, Jamie. Then I got super busy working at the gym, and I stopped eating crap. And there went the sweet tooth.

Until this week. I think it's officially back!

This is Trystan's birthday cake! It's sooo fabulous! I mean, really. AWESOME! You all have eaten my creations. You know what I'm capable of. I've outdone myself this time. Seriously.


It's a devil's food chocolate cake, with my signature white chocolate buttercream frosting with chopped double stuff oreos mixed in. The white chocolate is sandwiched between two layers of chocolate cake. Did I mention that the filling tastes like the yummy delicious filling of an actual oreo? It's the combination of white chocolate buttercreamy-love and the double stuffing of the oreos. I'm a genius! (yeah, really!) Did I also mention that the filling is as high as the cake? Then it's topped with my (other) signature dark chocolate buttercream, and garnished with oreo crumbles. You have to eat a small piece. It's that rich. It took all afternoon to make, but that's ok. I like doing crazy stuff like that. Oh yeah, and I made a few cupcakes with the leftover cake batter and frosting. I couldn't let it go to waste.

One more thing: Today was Trystan's 11th birthday. I'll post more about that maybe tomorrow. We had a great day. The End.

False alarm

Yeah, it didn't last. Thank goodness. Pictures to follow.

Tomorrow

Mourning the loss of a longtime dear friend

Sugar.

I am sad to say that I think I have lost my sweet tooth. Any of you who know me know how much I love sweets. Hell, you don't really have to know me that well to figure it out. The title of this blog implies a love for cookies at the very least.

But for the past few weeks, I have had no desire to eat sweets. No chocolate, no cookies, no pies, no ice cream, no cake, no nothing. I have eaten these things, though very sporadically. And I have eaten them only because I know I 'like' them. But I got no pleasure from eating the sweets. I was left with a funny taste in my mouth. A sweet taste that made me cringe. Even a sick feeling in my stomach.

I admit, I am confused about the change. It's not something I have set out to do. I am not intentionally eating fruit, it's just what I want. Instead of candy. Instead of cookies. Very confusing.

Unfortunately, I think this marks the end of an era. An era of baking and snacking that has defined who I am. I don't even bake anymore. My kids bake treats and they get to eat them, ALL OF THEM. No more hoarding the cookies for myself. No more eating cookies in my room while drinking DC.

It's sad. I've lost touch with a dear friend. Maybe we'll reunite soon. I hope so. Otherwise, I'll have to change the name of this blog.

Sit and Spin!

Have you ever done it? I think it's my new addiciton! Do you want to try? I'll be at the gym next Friday at 0545 if you want to join me. It's free if you are my guest. Come on!! It'll be fun!!

We've only lived here since April

Here is the street view of the house

Our parking lot!! Yes, parking lot.

The prized, thrice transplanted, and thrice divided hydrangea bush. I love hydrangeas!

My favorite spot in the whole house is outside on the deck.
Yes, I know it's blurry, but you read right. BACK ACRE!

Yes, it's a nature trail. It's not very long (400 feet), but it goes around Minnick Mountain to the back acre. The back acre AKA: Minnick family bonfire and campground.

I'm not taking pictures of the inside of my house. It's a house. There isn't really anything fancy about it. We have beautiful hardwood floors. That's about it. The furniture is the same, so if you have ever been to my house before, you've seen it already.

We had a bonfire a couple of weeks ago, and it was too dark for any of the pictures to come out. I'll take pictures at the next one. We are having a famly campout sometime in late August-mid September. You are all invited. Send me an email if you want to get the evite.

That's all. See you next month!

I finally did it...

...and I liked it.

I'm sorry, Brandi, Crystal, Harmony, and any of you other girls who hate twilight. I tried to hate it. Yes, it was a bit angsty, but so is my life. I do have a teenager, you know. Also, I thought Eddie was pretty sexy. I wanted him to bite me.

I don't get the funny part. What was funny about it? Please enlighten me.

One of these days, you bi***es will get a real post from me. And there will be pictures of my house in them. Maybe.

random pictures of the past week

Isabel and Mimi all dressed up in sheets. Patricia made togas for them to wear. It kinda made me wish there was a party to go to so she could make me one.

She is usually very cute. I promise.
This is what Trystan does to Sasha, our cat. He makes me feel this way too.

Leave a ten year old boy alone with a camera, and you get about a hundred pictures of him making faces like this one. You also get lots of pictures of the animals, siblings, and random household objects. Like this:

I made waffles with blueberry sauce and ice cream for Mel's father's day breakfast. Do you remember last year's blueberry picking adventure? I learned my lesson. This year, Mel and I went blueberry picking on opening day and got close to 20 pounds of berries. UMMMMMMMM they are so delicious!

This one is for all of you who are still curious about our animal situation. It's a lizard. And it lives under the floor/in the wall of our house. That's the front door. It's about 25 feet from my bed. That's a generous estimation. Oh, did I mention that there have been mouse sightings at this exact location?

why the monkey wrapped his tail around the flagpole AKA: why i haven't been blogging

1. i'm too busy
2. i don't want to fight the kids for the computer
3. i can't think of anything new to tell you
4. the things i could blog about will get me in trouble
5. i can't do anything around my house without my kids talking to me and bothering me
6. i'm too tired by the time the kids are in bed and quiet
7. i can't concentrate
8. i'm working
9. i have laundry to do
10. i have to do the dishes

i'm not depressed. i'm actually feeling great.

my job is awesome! if you want to take a look around the new gym, just stop by. if you are the least bit interested in joining, ask for Amanda and tell her i sent you (really, she'll hook you up). she has signed up a couple of my friends already. if you sign up and want training, tell them i sent you (another hook up).

the house is coming along. i am not going to post pictures. you can come see it for yourself. call me. my old (301) phone number will give you the new one. or, you can leave a message on it and i'll call you back.

that's all for now. maybe more tomorrow. maybe not for another month. who can say?

Top Ten Reasons Marianne Hasn't Been Blogging

Today's post brought to you by guest blogger, Brenda

I don't know where she is or what she's doing, but here are a few guesses:


10. Too much time at the gym strained her fingers and she can't type.

9. She got Lyme disease from her tick infested new house and died.

8. She's in bed recovering from a Brazillian butt lift.

7. She's out shopping for mom jeans.

6. She's been playing Guitar Hero for 6 days straight.

5. She's busy cooking creative, healthful, balanced meals for her family while the rest of us just feed ours ramen.

4. She's too busy with her new friends in her new ward to bother updating the old ones. I guess she missed out on learning that old Girl Scout classic:

Make new friends but keep the old
One is silver and the other gold.

We're gold, Marianne. We're gold. Just remember that.

3. Too much connubial bliss.

2. My hotness scorched her retinas and now she's blind. Sorry.

1. She's sleeping. Shhhhhhh...

What I've been up to...

• Started working at a brand new gym. As a trainer. AWESOMENESS!!!!


• Moved into a different house at the same time. SUCKSBIGTIME!!!!


• Working early morning hours three days per week + unpacking and moving = passing out at 9 pm. SNORE!!!!


• Hard water that turned whites dingy, rusty, brown. Showers that smell like pennies dropping from the sky. Spiders in every corner. Ticks. Ticks. Ticks. WHAT THE HELL WERE WE THINKING!!???!?!?


• Water finally fixed. Spiders are hiding. Got the insecticide. PROCRASTINATION!


• Escaped to the mountains of West Virginia with husband for romantic weekend getaway and go to sleep by 9 pm both nights. STILL ROCKED IT!!
  


• Almost meltdown, held it together (loosely), organized kitchen (sorta), had great night at work (thanks, Maggie), slept in 'till 6:30 the next morning. AAAAAAHHHHHH! THE WEEKEND.!!
  

Mel is pretty awesome!!

For those of you who didn't already know, I just thought I'd tell you that he's a pretty awesome husband.

A couple of weeks ago, in anticipation of Mother's day and our recent move, he made 'secret' arrangements with my brother and a good friend of the family (Carol) to take me away this weekend. We are going to Carol's wonderful cottage in West Virginia called 'Dream Time'. My brother is staying with the kids, and my mother also came up for the weekend to see the house and to help out. I don't know how to get there, I don't know what we are going to do, I don't know what we are going to eat, I haven't been involved in any way. All I have to do is show up. I love that!! I know it will be great.

I can't wait until tomorrow morning!

Is it wrong...

that I don't want to go to church in my new ward today? I have to be all smiley and nice to people I don't know and pretend that my life is great, and that I am not totally stressed out over moving. I miss Ft. Meade already. You people know me. I can be real (well, almost) with you people. If my day (or week) is sucking, I can just come out and say it. I think you girls expect that kind of honesty from me.

I thought that I didn't really care about moving away, until I realized that I might not be kept in the loop about all the lunches and playdates and book clubs (that I never go to) and all that stuff. So, keep me in mind. I'm still close.

Don't worry, I won't like them as much as I liked you all. I've already made up my mind.

Cooking with Brenda: Asian-ish Chicken Noodle Soup

Today's post is brought to you by guest blogger Brenda

I think Marianne is busy moving. Or maybe she died. I dunno. In any case, she totally missed posting a recipe this week. So, being the friend that I am, I'm stepping up to post one for her. And today I'm going to feature an ingredient that you will likely never see on this blog again: RAMEN. It's seems like the anti-Marianne ingredient. Right up there with Canned Cream of Fat and Sodium Soup.


So here's what you'll need (for 2-ish servings):

-One package of chili flavored Top Ramen (other flavors are acceptable, especially chicken, but the chili gives it a nice heat).

-1/2 cup cooked and chopped chicken (I like to use some from a rotisserie chicken. I'm all about the laziness).

-1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (white and green parts)

-1 TBS minced cilantro (or Knorr makes a tiny cilantro bullion cube, sold in the Mexican food section, that works great)

-1/2 TSP minced ginger

-1/2 TSP minced garlic

-2 TSP sesame oil

Cook the ramen according to the directions on the package (Do not drain!!). Add in all the other ingredients. Enjoy!

(Oh, and Pampered Chef plug: I use THIS to make ramen in. Four minutes in the microwave and viola! Done to perfection.)

She's Gross!

Me: Vivian, where did you get that gum?

Vivian: From the floor. It just had a couple of fuzzies on it, so I picked them off and chewed it. It's fine.

Me: EWWWWWWWW! That's gross.

Vivian: Ha Ha Ha. (giggling) I KNOW!!!

Are you guilty?

You are not alone. There's help out there.